How to take and store your homeopathic remedy
Are homeopathic remedies safe?
Homeopathic remedies are safe for children and pregnant women to take, as there are very unlikely to be any toxic side-effects at all for any properly-prepared homeopathic remedies above 18c (the homeopathic first aid kits generally contain 30c or 200c potencies).
While homeopathy is generally considered safe to use alongside orthodox medicines (unlike with some herbs that may interact with meds), some conventional medicines (such as antibiotics and antihistamines) may, of necessity impede your body’s innate self-healing energetic pathways while doing their job, and this can mean that professional homeopathic help is needed to get a good self-healing response going. Never stop taking a prescribed medicine without first discussing this with the person who prescribed it for you.
How do I take homeopathic remedies?
Try not to touch the pills when taking your dose. Tip a pill onto the lid of the container, and put it directly into your mouth.
Suck the homeopathic remedy until it dissolves. Don’t crunch it or swallow it whole.
Children can take homeopathic remedies as soft tablets, or a pill can be crushed between two clean teaspoons and sprinkled into the child’s mouth. Alternatively, pop a pill in a little water, stir the water a few times with clean spoon, and give one teaspoonful of the remedy as a dose.
If you can, avoid food and drink (except for water) for 20 minutes before and after taking a homeopathic remedy (not always necessary if repeating frequent doses for a short time, eg for an acute ailment). It’s often repeated that while using homeopathy, you should avoid taking, handling or using substances that (it’s said) can hinder the action of homeopathic remedies, eg cough mixtures, Olbas oil, Karvol, Vick’s vapo-rub, Fisherman’s Friends, Polo mints, menthol, eucalyptus or camphor products, excessive kitchen spices, coffee. I’m personally not convinced that these things will block your system from using the energetic remedies, but you may have heard this advice. I leave it up to you. However, if we should ever find ourselves puzzled that well-indicated remedies are failing to act, despite deeper intercurrent (block-removing) remedies being given to clear the way, we may need to revisit this.
How many homeopathic pills should I take?
The following advice is for minor, acute and self-limiting problems. For these ailments, take one pill every 1-4 hours (as often as every hour if your symptoms are intense or severe, but every 4 hours if the issue is milder). Once you notice any improvement, stop dosing, and only repeat the remedy if the symptoms come back. If there’s been no improvement after 5 doses, choose a different remedy, or consult an experienced professional homeopath (looks around nonchalantly).
With homeopathy, less is more, so don’t take more of a remedy thinking it will do more good - in fact, when your system has ‘heard’ the energetic message of the remedy, it’s important to stop the remedy, and let your system get on with the vital work of naturally rebalancing and self-healing your system.
Chronic or persistent ailments need a very different treatment and dosage protocol, so are best managed by a professional homeopath - please don’t ever try to self-treat for chronic/long-standing, severe or persistent issues.
Can homeopathic remedies be accidentally antidoted?
It’s often said that homeopathic remedies can be really sensitive to outside influences, easily becoming accidentally anti-doted. I’m not entirely convinced about this commonly repeated belief - I think it may well be based on a misunderstanding of the context in which a few aphorisms (paragraphs) in the homeopath’s ‘bible’, the Organon of Medical Arts by Samuel Hahnemann were written. Nevertheless, it won’t hurt to adhere to the storage tips below. Stored hygienically, homeopathic remedies should remain effective and viable for many years.
The best way to store homeopathic remedies
As mentioned, it’s thought by many to be best to store homeopathic remedies in a cool, dark place (not the fridge), away from strong-smelling substances. It’s not a good idea to store them in the bathroom or kitchen. An (unscented) sock drawer in the bedroom is ideal.
Don’t store remedies near mobile phones, televisions, microwave ovens, computers or hi-fi speakers. (Apparently.)
Keep remedies away from direct sunlight, and excessive heat or cold. (Again - apparently.)
Always replace the correct lid securely after use, and never transfer remedies to and fro between one container and another. (I agree with this one - cross-contamination could be an issue.)
